Crossing Swords
by ChristmasForJuan
Summary: Based vaguely on the epilogue of the Unlimited Blade Works Route, this short story will revolve around the trio of Shirou, Saber, and Rin as they prepare themselves for a possible conflict with the Mages Association. To this end they put Shirou's capabilities to the test by having him face Saber in single-combat. An all-out battle ensues.
1. To wait continuously…

"All-out? As in, no holding back? Wait a minute Tohsaka, do you know what you are saying right now!?"

"I am in agreement with Shirou. Rin, although he is no longer as helpless as he was during the War…"

"Ugh…" Shirou winced at the brutality of Saber's honest evaluation, but didn't have it in him to correct her.

"…neither do I think it is wise for me to go as far as using Excalibur in today's training session!"

It was rare for Saber to get this adamant about something unless it concerned their health or safety, and evidently this was one such case. Rin merely sighed as she lazily rested her head on her palm, comfortably leant over the table to enjoy her tea after their shared breakfast like always, but her attitude implied that she had expected such a reaction. As for why Rin was seated at the Emiya Household's dining table instead of having breakfast at her own place… well there was no solid reason for that to be honest, but if Shirou had to put it into words, it would probably be because it 'felt right' this way.

After the conclusion of the 5th Holy Grail War Rin had stubbornly extended a renewed pact to Saber as she was on the verge of disappearing, loathe to see such a prime familiar escape her clutches. Together the three of them had traveled to Clocktower to accompany Rin as she completed her education to become a full-fledged member of the Association, Shirou enjoying the privilege of enrolling as her apprentice, until they finally returned home to Fuyuki after long years of study and training. Though Shirou had been worried at some point regarding where Rin would settle down after she was done, it would appear the answer had been quite simple. "The Tohsaka have been Second Owners of Fuyuki ever since I can remember, so why would it be any different with me?" she had matter-of-factly exclaimed after he had approached her on the subject in the past, and it would seem nothing had changed.

Indeed. Nothing had changed.

Rin was busy with doing work for the Association, Shirou continued the practice of his magecraft under her tutelage, and Saber… oh. Nevermind. There was one thing that was different.

"Saber… please don't talk so loud this early in the morning."

"Ah. My apologies Rin, but the point is-"

"Did you never wonder why I restored your bond to Emiya-kun?"

"…" Saber continued staring at Rin with a defiant gaze, but ultimately decided that it would be for the best to go along with what she had to say for now. Shirou, in the meantime, continued to silently wash the remaining dishes whilst listening to their conversation.

"Was it not to aid you in providing for me?" Saber ultimately guessed.

"That is a big part of it too of course. Providing for your mana upkeep just by myself can be quite exhausting, especially after doing it without break for all these years, and it doesn't help that Emiya-kun also happily consumes my magical energy whenever he gets too excited with his Projections. True, the daily boosts he gives us certainly help, but they simply aren't quite as consistent as a traditional bond between master and familiar, which is why I bound you to him alongside me so that you can draw energy from us both," Rin proudly explained, no doubt pleased with herself for having performed the difficult procedure of sharing a single familiar amongst two masters all by herself.

That being said, her audience had other things in mind.

"Daily…"

"…boosts."

Both Shirou and Saber snuck quick glances at each other before awkwardly hanging their heads in shame over the private detail Rin had so openly divulged, and while it wasn't like anybody else was listening, it was still embarrassing to address it so directly.

"W-what? This isn't anything new at this point… and stop acting like that, you are making me feel weird for saying it," Rin hurriedly puffed up her chest and crossed her arms, trying to put on a strong act when in fact it was her whose face was the most flushed.

"A-anyway, my point is that there was another reason for re-establishing the bond between you two."

"And that is?" having finished his work in the kitchen, Shirou had hung up his apron and joined the two at the table, carrying a small plate of sliced fruit to serve as a small snack.

"You should know more than anybody, Emiya-kun. What have you been dreaming about lately?"

"Hm? Nothing worth mentioning. I usually have trouble remembering my dreams anyway, but recently I have been-… oh!"

"Exactly" Rin nodded in the affirmative, though that left Saber alone out of the loop.

"Rin? Shirou? What is it?"

"Well Saber, it might just be easier to show you," Shirou answered with a sheepish grin, holding his hand out and filling his Magic Circuits with mana.

The act came so easy to him now, his magecraft having become as intuitive as walking or breathing, and the quality of his projections likewise reflected his growth. It only took him a mere second to recall the memory he had seen in last night's dream, and as soon as he could picture it in his mind's eye, the pathway of construction instantly become clear to him. Muttering the single aria that had come to define his unique magecraft, Shirou materialized an unfamiliar blade, "Trace on".

A dagger as white as snow manifested in his hands after a brief transient glow; golden faery letters were inscribed on its blade and hand-guard, granting the weapon a surreal beauty one would commonly only expect to find in fantasy novels. And yet-

"Carnwennan…!?" Saber's palpable shock was vocalized by her loud gasp, though alongside it one could discern an almost melancholic familiarity.

"It was your dagger, was it not? Back when you were still King?"

"Yes it was… I never expected to see it again after I died, or have supposed to at least…. Rin. What is the meaning of this?"

"Hmm~" Rin, who had been quietly listening up until now, perked up and opened her eye, "I thought I told you I wanted you guys to fight all-out, and that includes you as well. If Shirou is allowed to use his Reality Marble, wouldn't it only be fair if he gave you back some of your old weapons too?"

"Rin this is no joke! Carnwennan is a high-ranking Noble Phantasm that can split anything it is thrown at cleanly in two, not to mention the cloaking effect it possess. This is not a weapon to be used against someone in a sparring match, even more so in regards to Excalibur!"

"Then let me ask you something Saber," Rin calmly continued, seemingly ignoring Saber's understandable concern, "What do you think Emiya-kun just did?"

"He projected my dagger via his magecraft, or am I wrong?"

"No not at all, if anything you… no. Maybe all of us have become a bit too comfortable as of late."

"What do you mean Tohsaka?" at this point even Shirou grew slightly worried at Rin's unusually serious tone.

"Let me put it this way. Shirou, if I were to ask you right now to trace and replicate one of my jewels, would you be able to do it?"

"Why… yes, probably. I couldn't replicate the amounts of Prana you have accumulated within them just like that, but if we are simply talking about the vessel, then I think I could do it."

"It's not that you think you can, the problem is that you can. To put it bluntly, even just a single one of my gems costs a fortune, but as an upside to that they are capable of immense power. Just one can generate a blast rivaling magecraft from the Age of Gods, and while I never really tried it, I am pretty sure I could have taken one or two of Berserker's lives if I has used all 10 of my jewels at the time... probably."

"But that is…"

"…impossible."

Both Shirou and Saber were shocked by Rin's casual declaration, but Rin was too wrapped up in her teacher-mode to notice.

"Well, you might be right. I never actually got the chance to try it so we'll never know, but I am pretty confident that I could do it. In any case, these gems are a rare resource for me. The Prana inside of them aside, the actual jewels are pretty hard for me to get ahold of, and yet here is Shirou, someone who could mass produce them for me without much effort."

"Wait a minute Tohsaka, that might be the case, but just by sight alone the jewels I could produce would be inferior to the ones you already have."

"Then what if I made you swallow them?"

"Wha-?"

"Ok, bad example. But what if I were to store them inside of you in conceptual form like Avalon? It may take a while for you to become 100% familiar with them, but after a while you should be able to create a perfect replica, no?"

"If you put it that way…"

"Not just that, but even though we never formally tested it, we know that your projections can last for several days without disappearing even without you having to specifically dedicate your focus on maintaining them, so using my gems as an example, I could easily use your projections and pump them full of my Prana, simply re-allocating the stored energy when you feel like they're close to breaking down. So long as I use them up before your projections disappear, I would never have to worry about buying gems for the rest of my life!"

"What are you getting at Tohsaka?"

Rin sighed and peered into her empty tea cup to see if there was still a sip left in it. She probably expected him to have understood what she was trying to say by now.

"What I am getting at is that we didn't keep your Reality Marble a secret from the Association just because I felt like it."

All at once the room was draped in a heavy atmosphere.

"If the Association found out that you have the ability to endlessly replicate magical relics, you'd be marked with a Sealing Designation in no time. It doesn't help that you have mastered a Reality Marble on top of that, they're banned by the Mages Association for a good reason, you know?"

Though Rin had explained herself in a calm and composed manner, it was clear that she too was worried about Shirou's safety. If what she had said was true, in the worst case scenario Shirou could be captured by the Association and turned into a factory that was forced to continuously replicate and/or enhance valuable magical artifacts for them, and once he had outlived his use, his body would be dissected and taken apart for study so that they may preserve the method of his magecraft for future generations. When faced with the twisted brutality of this reality, Shirou couldn't help but break out in cold sweat.

"Do you understand now?" Rin asked, "The people of the Association aren't the type to respect human rights if they have something valuable to gain, and you Shirou, your value is incalculable. Just look at Car-… Carnew-… that dagger in your hands. Saber, you mentioned it can split its targets in half just by throwing it at them and also has some sort of cloaking effect, no?"

"…you are right Rin. So long as I hold Carnwennan, any shadow I step into becomes my cloak, disguising any physical and magical traces of my existence. Naturally the effect dissipates as soon as I step out of it, but other than that the charm bound to this blade is flawless."

"Then there you go. It probably didn't even take a second for Shirou to project this weapon along with its effects, and though it might be a bit weaker than the original, that much is irrelevant compared to the miracle he just performed. This is why I said we have become too comfortable with Shirou's Projection Magecraft; we have forgotten just how absurd it really is. And trust me, if other people find out about his ability, they aren't going to undervalue his Gradation Air like we have."

It was the first time Shirou had ever considered the idea.

He was honestly surprised with himself how little he was appalled by the thought of helping Rin provide for her jewels that way, but the mere consideration of being used as a tool to further the ambitions of magi whose intent was questionable at best, was something he rejected with every fiber of his being. Before he knew it, Carnwennan groaned under his unrelenting grip, and it was only after Saber had gently placed her hand on his shoulder that he eased his tension and allowed the blade to fade away.

They were each dealing with this information their own way. Rin had probably already considered the possibility before, which is why she was currently able to stay so calm, and Shirou couldn't allow himself to aid the selfish machinations of others. And Saber?

"Rin," she spoke loud and clear, her posture and presence befitting a king, "Is this why you suggested us to go all-out for today's practice session."

Like a devil in disguise, Rin confidently smirked.

"You catch on quick. I'm already well aware of my capabilities of course, and as my Servant it is quite easy for me to measure your Stats and abilities as well. Shirou on the other hand is hard to judge. We may be able to use Archer as a basis, but as of now we have no idea how far he can go in his current state. If you go all-out and push him to his very limit however, it will be easier for me to calculate his strength in case we ever need to prepare for the inevitable. That, and wouldn't you prefer to do this in a controlled environment where we can guarantee his safety?"

All valid points, and Saber saw no reason to deny her. Just like Rin expected.

"Wait just a minute there Tohsaka, I can't help but agree with everything that you said, but we are talking about Saber here. She's a Servant while I'm just me. Even when we're just using wooden swords I can barely keep up with her, even after all this time, and now you want me to fight her one-on-one at full force!?"

"You beat Gilgamesh, did you not?"

"This and that are two separate things! It just so happened that we were compatible with each other, and besides, he only used the weakest of his Noble Phantasms against me. Had he taken me seriously like he did with Berserker, I wouldn't have lasted for more than a second!"

"You are really selling yourself short, Emiya-kun. The fact remains that you have beaten a Servant before, and in the years since then you have grown. Become stronger. And don't worry, even Saber will have trouble against your trump card after all~"

"You don't mean…"

"Of course. When I mean all-out, I mean all-out. Just for today, I'll have you push Unlimited Blade Works to its limits!"

* * *

"Trace… on"

Just like that, they had transitioned over to the dojo and made the necessary preparations for their fight, though all that meant was that Shirou had changed into a clean shirt, Saber had summoned her armor, and Rin… to be honest Shirou wasn't exactly sure why Rin came along. It was probably just to watch.

And so, after invoking and dragging them into his Reality Marble, Shirou had found the dagger Carnwennan and Saber's past shield beside it, with Avalon being the only remaining item to add to the collection.

"Phew, that was the last of them. Alright Saber, I'm ready."

It was Rin's idea to restore Saber to her full strength by returning some of her old weapons, and this naturally included Avalon. He had removed it from his body just then, but he obviously projected another identical copy which he placed back within him. After all, were it not for Avalon's ability to instantly regenerate severed limbs and crushed organs, the very thought of having an all-out battle would have been impossible to begin with. Had it not been for this guarantee of his well-being, Saber would have never agreed to this fight in the first place.

Turning back towards towards the two, he was surprised to see them curiously inspecting their surroundings.

"Is something wrong?" he asked.

"Well Emiya-kun, don't you notice anything different about your Unlimited Blade Works?"

Shirou raised his eyebrow and took a look for himself, but nothing seemed out of the ordinary to him. Everything was like it had always been, or rather, it seemed so natural that he couldn't spot anything in particular. That was only to be expected. This was his Inner World after all.

"Shirou," Saber chimed in after noting Shirou's obliviousness to the obvious change to this realm, "Do you not notice the grass? Or the blue skies?"

"Oh now that you mention it… the sky is still a bit overcast though."

"That is what you are concerned about?"

"Why Rin? Is something the matter?"

Overwhelmed by Shirou's lack of awareness only concerning things regarding himself, Rin wearily palmed her face and sighed, "Well, it's not really a problem I guess. Quite the opposite in fact. It is a good thing that your Inner World isn't a dark and dreary place anymore, but the least you could have done is notice that change yourself. Whatever. Let's move on."

Still not entirely sure what Rin was getting at, Shirou merely shrugged it off and motioned for Saber to come closer.

"Well then Saber, Unlimited Blade Works was able to automatically replicate Carnwennan and Wynebgwrthucher from seeing them in your dreams, and I'm sure I could find Caliburn if I wanted to-"

"There is no need Shirou, this much is enough. Caliburn was a blade meant to signify my right to rule, and while I still regard it quite fondly, Excalibur should serve me well enough for now. It remains the better of the two in regards to fighting."

"Ah, ok then. Though I have to admit I was surprised to find that you had quite a lot of weapons back then. In my dreams I could see flashes of Prydwen and something called Rhongomyniad… which can't be right. That lance… whatever it was, it was impossible for me to get a read on it at all. What was that?"

"It was a Divine Construct given to me for the sake of keeping the balance of the world at peace, though you needn't concern yourself with it. As for Prydwen, unless you mean for us to cross the seas, we won't have much need for my ship," she answered with a smile.

"Thought so…" Shirou sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck as he watched her pick up her dagger and shield, although curiously, she stopped briefly to look at the latter. Her eyes were filled with something other than joy or nostalgia. Was it perhaps unease?

"Saber?" Rin spoke up, "Is something the matter?"

"No, not at all. It's just… this shield. 'Wynebgwrthucher: Face of the Evening' belonged to one of my oldest armaments, a weapon I carried into many wars and battles. As such I would have remembered it fondly like Carnwennan or Caliburn, were it not for…"

Having traced the weapon, Shirou was well aware of its effects and lowered his gaze, lips pressed tightly together and eyebrows furrowed.

"What is it?" Rin cautiously inquired, unaware yet perceptive enough that something was amiss.

"It is an Anti-Army Noble Phantasm when invoked, one with a large-scale passive effect. Much like the legend of Caliburn, or rather, the tale of the 'sword of selection' was derived from the original sword Merodach, so is my shield Wynebgwrthucher based on the shield of the Ulster King Conchobar. It is not uncommon for tales of old to borrow from each other and make use of similar elements, and our weapons are no different. Under the pretense of Divine Intervention my shield is capable of lessening the pain of the wounded under my command, as well as strengthening them and boosting their morale. It is a magnificent shield in that regard… however this is nothing but a method of disguising its true effect. It is a vampiric weapon, one which drains the energies of my opponents and bestows them upon my allies. Their pain is lessened and the their strength enhanced, but this miracle is achieved by the suffering of our enemies."

"That is…"

"Horrible? Fiendish? It is all that and more Rin."

"I have to be honest Saber, you were the last person I expected to use a shield like this. Oh. I don't mean that in a bad way of course…"

"I thank you for you concern Rin, but you are right," although Saber comforted her with smile, her eyes were ridden with sadness and regret, "It was a terrible weapon to wield, even against those that sought to bring my country to ruin. And yet I relied on it. I am not one to make excuses for myself… but I can't help but admit that times have truly changed. Rin. My life wasn't always as filled with happiness as it is now."

"Saber… I'm sorry," Shirou quietly muttered.

"Don't be. This is merely a testament of how the world has improved. For the better. Back then things were… darker, and more unforgiving. 'The Face of the Evening' was a pleasant allusion to the beauty of the setting sun, but its true meaning was of the eventual demise of my opponents. The longer they fought, the closer they would come to succumbing to eternal night."

"How dreadfully poetic," Rin commented with crossed arms.

"Isn't it? Regardless, it is not a weapon I intend to use again, and neither would it would do me much good in my fight against Shirou. It is an Anti-Army Noble Phantasm, and with no army to support either of us, its function is solely limited to that of a shield."

Moving on from the subject of her past, Saber fasted the shield to her back while sheathing Excalibur in Avalon on her left hip. Carnwennan remained in the familiar grip of her right hand as she had no sheath for it.

"Not using Excalibur?" Rin curiously inquired from the side as she saw Saber spin the dagger in her hands.

"Even I would be hard pressed to use Excalibur alongside Carnwennan and use both of them effectively. Dual wielding was not a common practice during my time. Carnwennan is lower ranked than Excalibur anyway, so as long as I do not activate its effect by throwing it, it should prove sufficient for pushing Shirou to his limits."

"…"

Shirou was not one to respond to provocations. In contrast to Rin's hot-tempter or Saber's competitive nature, Shirou couldn't remember the last time he let himself get riled up for his own sake. True, while there had been numerous cases when he stood up for others, more often than not getting involved in physical brawls or verbal disputes, he simply never felt the need nor desire to do something as selfish as defending his own personal pride.

And yet.

The fact that Saber would refuse to draw Excalibur against him made him feel… odd.

His fingertips prickled with unexpressed desire and his blood felt hotter as it pulsated through his veins. Furthermore, for whatever reason, it seemed his lips had contorted into a slight frown.

"Shirou?" Saber worriedly asked after noticing his expression, whereas Rin merely regarded him with a devilish grin as if already aware of his inner thought process, hopping away a sizable distance in anticipation of their clash.

"Come," Shirou commanded.

Shrill scraping noises echoed in the empty landscape as two swords were pulled from the earth, their presence announced by a mere shimmer of black and white as Kanshou and Bakuya soared through the clouded skies, ultimately finding their place in Shirou's very palms. As if that was the only place they belonged. As if they existed only to be held in his hands. Together, the monochromatic swords exuded a presence no less formidable than that of the Heroic Spirit who had originally wielded them.

Saber's grip on Carnwennan tightened and her gaze sharpened. Shirou was no doubt ready to fight now, and yet a proud smile was evident on her lips.

Had she maybe offended him by only testing him with her dagger first? To Shirou, who had been training with her for several years now, even if he were to be initially reluctant about facing her in an all-out battle, it was only inevitable for the small embers of a warrior's pride to come to the forefront. Even though Shirou probably wasn't aware of it himself, he likely looked forward to measuring his own growth against her Excalibur. As his instructor, Saber could not have have been happier. As both retreated several paces to allow for enough space between them, the world was silenced by the anticipation of their clash.

Using words to announce the start of their battle was superfluous at this point.

Shirou raised his pair of twin blades towards his chest.

Saber readied her golden-white dagger at her side.

The earth groaned as Shirou tore the sprouting metal from the ground.

The earth burst apart at Saber's violent charge.


	2. To pursue endlessly…

Shirou's Reality Marble had changed over the years.

Though it did not suffocate its inhabitants in thick black smog and did not obscure its horizon with the crushing presence of monolithic black gears, neither was it bathed in warm twilight anymore. It had evolved beyond even that. The days of happiness spent with Rin and Saber had truly changed him; their time together teaching him to love himself. Before he knew grass had grown and covered his barren landscape in a vivid green, the warm glow of twilight replaced by an overcast blue sky. Rather than the eve of autumn, his Inner World now resembled the dawn of spring, and while it was yet a far cry away from the heights of summer, it was remarkable progress nonetheless.

However.

Currently the sky was obscured by something other than clouds. Heaver. Harder. Metallic.

The moment Saber had kicked off the ground and charged at Shirou, the insurmountable number of swords that pierced the earth between them were torn from their resting place and hauled into the sky by the will of their creator, their number so numerous that they blended together into a single oppressing shade of pure black.

Though the path that existed between Saber and Shirou was now polished clean, this meant that there was no cover for Saber to hide herself form his assault. She was a sitting duck in the midst of an open field. Shirou had no intention of easing into the battle and give Saber a chance to make use of her overwhelming advantage at close range. If he wanted to beat her, or at the very least slow her down, he would need to bombard her right from the start before she could draw Excalibur. Putting it this way, it was rather fortunate for Shirou that Saber chose to wield Carnwennan against him first, so this was his only chance to pressure her into a corner.

First it was one. Then there were two. And soon the rest of them followed.

One by one the black mass of swords descended upon Saber like metallic rain, an assault from which there seemed no escape. Shirou had traced her weapons previously and was thus intimately familiar with their effects, and so his act of altering the landscape was a deliberate move to deprive her of any shadows to hide in. There existed no crevices or caves to use as cover, all that stretched before them was an endless horizon of rolling hills.

And yet Saber continued her charge unperturbed.

It wasn't that she was ignoring the looming threat above her, her sharp eyes were locked on each and every incoming projectile coming her way, yet her approach never slowed; never wavered.

The reason for her confidence become clear soon after.

While Shirou may have eliminated all stationary shadows bound to the earth, those that flew towards her from the skies were impossible to conceal. As soon as the first projectile had come close enough to split her skull in two, suddenly, her very presence vanished from existence. Not just her physical body, even the weight of her fighting spirit was obliterated from this earth in a single instant, the fact that she had recklessly charged at Shirou moments before nothing but a lie.

The projectile that was meant to have pierced her body now detonated against lifeless earth after its previous target had mysteriously disappeared, but then-

A flash of blue and sliver.

For nothing more than a second Shirou could spot a hazy glimpse of her as she leapt out of the shadow of the first projectile and into the next, hiding her presence once again to elude Shirou's haphazard torrent of blades, and stepping from one flickering shadow into another with the methodical grace of a dancer.

 _"_ _I see…"_ Shirou came to realize.

He may have removed all the shadows on the ground for her to step into, but for that brief moment before his projectiles hit the ground, it was inevitable that they would cast shadows of their own, granting Saber plenty of opportunities to inch her way closer to him step by step while making it impossible for him to pinpoint her location. By uprooting a tree that she could have possibly used as cover he had instead given her a forest, and because of his mistake, the distance that had previously existed between them was now almost already crossed.

Shirou clicked his tongue and hurriedly tossed the remainder of the descending swords to the side, seeing as they would only serve to grant Saber more cover at this point. Sure enough, a few seconds later she emerged back into his unobstructed view, though this time only a few paces away.

Saber's body was lithe and delicate, the body of an underdeveloped girl that had stopped aging form the day she pulled the sword from stone, and yet how was she able to swing around Excalibur with such ease and close vast gaps with a single step? The answer as simple.

The air around her surged with the mighty release of her Prana Burst as Saber flooded her legs with magical energy, turning her own body into a cannonball as she launched herself forward with the speed and weight of a locomotive.

 _"_ _Urgh!"_

Shirou was unable to breathe as he raised Kanshou and Bakuya just in time to intercept the calamity that was Saber, his lungs crushed from the tension of his reinforced muscles as they struggled to withstand the almighty force of her single attack. Already he lost his footing and skidded across the ground while their blades remained interlocked, Saber continuing to push him back with her overwhelming strength.

 _"_ _All of that…"_ Shirou realized in horror, _"…and she's only wielding her dagger!?"_

However, judging from the measured glint in Saber's eyes it would seem that she had aimed to break Kanshou and Bakuya with her attack just now, an attack he had resisted by predicting her movements, so now he would be able to steal the initiative back from her. Saber pulled back Carnwennan and readied herself for another quick thrust, but Shirou likewise used this chance to disengage and slide his right foot just a few centimeters to the right.

There.

Just as he had meant for it to appear, a weapon manifested itself right where he needed it. Unlimited Blade Works was a World tailored towards the needs and wants of Emiya Shirou, and as such, any weapon he could think of would manifest itself at hand's reach; or rather, it would had existed in that very spot ever since its creation, merely waiting for the moment it could be wielded by its master.

Regardless, the bladed tool embedded in the earth just slightly to his right was kicked loose with a well-aimed punt with his right foot and sent spinning into the direction of Saber's neck. With no choice but to halt her attack, Saber side-stepped to her left in order to avoid the diagonal trajectory of the tossed projectile, but only belatedly became aware of an unmistakable noise. A cold rattling caused by several metal links attached to each other. A chain.

 _"_ _Sayoarashi: Evening Storm of the Silent Blade"_

It was a Rank D Noble Phantasm that lacked a powerful trump card. Even when invoking its name, there was naught to awaken from within it as its only redeeming quality was its passive effect, the ability to cease any and all noise related to it (including the wind hissing at its blade and the scraping of its metal chain). This passive ability would only activate at night however, and as such was of little use to Shirou during daytime, but what he was really after was the chain. He was in need of anything to act as a brief divider between himself and Saber to buy himself a single precious second of time, and Sayoarashi was simply the first Kusarigama that came to mind. At this point where a single wasted could mean the difference between life and death, searching his inventory for the correct weapon would have resulted in a devastating injury, and as such, Sayoarashi's ease of use was precisely what he needed.

The bladed sickle drew a diagonal chain between himself and Saber which ran from his right foot to her right cheek as it continued flying off into the air behind her, but this meant that Saber had dodged to her left to avoid the projectile, sacrificing the stability of her stance in the progress.

Saber's eyes widened in apprehension as she realized her blunder.

Bakuya had already left his hand. Shirou was one step ahead. The pure-white blade was spinning wildly, slicing apart the air as it shot towards Saber's head with the precision of an eagle. The chain barred the path to her right and Bakuya restricted escape to the left, all while Shirou had switched Kanshou into a back-handed grip and forced the tip of its edge straight in the direction of Saber's chest.

Not bad.

Painfully aware that he did not stand a chance in a straightforward 1v1, Shirou had instead improvised a method of constantly keeping Saber on her toes to keep her from attacking as much as possible, a fluid and continuous barrage of strikes meant to overwhelm a knight whose forte lay in the elegant simplicity of a direct approach. She had no choice but to retreat for now.

Escaping the bite of Kanshou by leaping backwards, all of a sudden her mind exploded with warning signals to warn her form an impending attack. But how? Bakuya had already grazed past her left shoulder, the Kusarigama was long gone, and Kanshou was steadily kept in her sight. At the pace Shirou was moving, he wouldn't have been able to catch up to her… so long as that was never his aim to begin with.

Night had not yet fallen in this realm, nor would it ever, and as such the chains of Sayoarashi rattled ominously as they sharply curved in the air, guided by nothing other but the hand Shirou freed by throwing Bakuya at her earlier. Now concealed behind his body, it had apparently taken ahold of Sayoarashi's chains and pulled them taut, the sickle that was supposed to have been discarded in a fruitless attack now bounding back and constricting Saber's body from behind like a predatory snake. The returning blade had traveled a full circle around her and now viciously descended upon her exposed neck, but that alone could not have been all. There was one more sword left unaccounted for.

Kanshou and Bakuya were an inseparable pair. Once divided, they would continue to seek out their other halves. A D Ranked Noble Phantasm like Sayoarashi she could endure, yet Kanshou and Bakuya were of C Rank, and their potency only increased when united once more.

Saber harshly clenched her teeth and altered the path of her retreat straight into Sayoarashi's embrace, willfully exposing her back to it in order to twist her body around and strike at Bakuya as it returned from its brief flight, forcefully repelling it and blowing it aside while the Kusarigama's chains tightened themselves around her upper torso and anchored themselves into her shoulder-blade via the sharp sickle-head.

"Hnghh..!"

She was prepared for the pain, but it hurt regardless. This would have been the perfect time to strike and follow up on a perfectly executed combo, but it would seem that Shirou had halted his advance after plucking Bakuya out of the sky with the same hand that held Kanshou, the cold chain now the only thing that existed in the distance between them.

"You would not follow up on such a splendid opportunity, Shirou?" Saber's breath was only slightly rugged as the pain had already lessened considerably in the few seconds that had passed. In order to allow Avalon's healing to continue unhindered, Saber unceremoniously pulled the sickle from her collarbone with her free-hand, but did not immediately discard it.

Shirou had no words to offer in response, but it was clear that his eyes were ridden with guilt. To see Saber bleeding, by his own hand no less, was not a sight he ever expected to witness. The heat of battle was one thing. In the brief instants when they clashed their swords he had no luxury to consider Saber as anything but his opponent, but now that he was awarded the opportunity to reflect, the gravity of the situation suddenly hit him.

"Shirou, please do not let your concern for me distract you. See? Avalon has already closed my wound. We agreed to this match precisely because of Avalon's protection in the first place, so it was only to be expected that the both of us would suffer some injuries" Saber tried her best to comfort her fragile pupil, but worrying about the well-being of others had always been in his nature.

Saber too shared the concern that an all-out fight between them would have been far too dangerous under normal circumstances, but Rin's fears were not without substance or reason. It was highly likely that Shirou's secret could be discovered any day now, and the risk only grew the more he refined his ability. They had no other choice but to hone his skills in preparation for such a day, at which point they might very well have to face off against the Mages Association itself. It was only with the greater good in mind that Saber could bring herself to swing her sword at Shirou, as much as every fiber in her being resisted the impulses of harming him. Shirou surely understand this as well, but it was likely that he was too sentimental a person to-

"I know. I thought I made up my mind as well, but seeing you injured like this just… worried me."

"As I said, there is no need for concern-"

"It's just that seeing you helpless to avoid my attack right now made me realize how dangerous this is for you. There is no doubt that normally you are unbeatable, but in here I can't help but worry for your safety."

…

The air suddenly become cold and rigid.

"Helpless, you say? This is dangerous for me, you say…?"

"Ah, Saber? Are you alright?" Shirou belated realized that he may have chosen his words poorly, but the damage had already been dealt.

"Maybe my restraint was unwarranted…" Saber wrapped Sayoarashi's chains twice around her left gauntlet.

"Maybe I should have answered your courage with the full extent of my might…" Saber spun Carnwennan in her right and pointed it towards her opponent's throat.

"If you think me so fragile, then maybe you are ready for a final lesson after all."

Shirou audibly gulped as cold sweat started pouring from his forehead. While it was technically their aim to fight all-out from the very beginning, evidently the both of them had been holding back ever so slightly out of a natural hesitation and concern for the other party. But now Saber had thrown even that into the wind. She was a chivalrous knight after all, nay, a King, and precisely because of her inherent pride his words had probably been misinterpreted by Saber as something along the lines of her being something to be protected. Not that she was entirely wrong of course, Shirou did have a strong desire to protect both her and Rin from harm, although in this case his self-depreciating tendencies seemed to have finally pushed Saber over the edge.

Shirou wanted to laugh awkwardly to dispel the tension, but he had a feeling that doing so right now would only result in (something close to) death. In hindsight, he may have made a huge mistake. Although Avalon ensured that they survived any dangerous injuries, this also meant that 'it was alright to inflict near-lethal wounds'… a thought blatantly written all over Saber's face right now. He dug in his heels and solidified his stance, for his opponent would not allow for anything less.

"Prepare yourself Shirou, here I come!"

Like a rocket igniting its engines, Saber's Prana Burst flared to life and suffocated the space around her.

In that very instant, the chain held between them was pulled taut as she seized it with full force, aiming to ruthlessly yank Shirou into her reach and crumple his stance.

"Uurgh!?"

He could barely keep his feet on the ground, let alone prevent his arm from being ripped off entirely, but what mattered was that he was able to resist the first pull. Not that it mattered, seeing as it was impossible for him to win a tug of war against Saber, but having stopped her initial attempt he could now deny her a second.

Clenching the chain tightly in his right hand, he flooded the armament with magical energy under the guise of reinforcing it. The amount he forcefully injected was much too large however, and while the quantity of Prana was nowhere near the amount needed to transform Sayoarashi into a Broken Phantasm, it was enough to cause an induced break-down of the fundamental structure, or in other words, an intentionally flawed attempt at Reinforcement that would cause the structural vessel to shatter.

The moment she became aware of his aim, Saber vanished from sight.

Currently the chain connecting them cast an uninterrupted shadow, a direct path leading the King towards her opponent; a perfect opportunity for Carnwennan to exploit.

 _"_ _Tch,"_ Shirou's Magic Circuits strained from the sudden flood of Prana and the Kusarigama groaned from literally being torn apart from within, until finally, an ear-splitting screech grated his ears in response to the disintegrating metal, fine fragments bursting into the air like glitter reflecting the sun's light.

Naturally this was not enough to stop her of course.

A brief flash of blue and silver flickered in the small gap caused by the broken chain from when Saber leapt from one shadow into the next, her advance unhindered despite Shirou's best efforts.

 _"_ _In that case…"_

…his only choice was to predict the route she would take and block her first strike. If he could only interrupt her for a split-second, he could pressure her with another combination attack. There was no need to plan one in advance, for in this realm there existed an infinite number of blades, each and every one imbued with its own unique abilities. He had to merely take one into his grasp to recover their memories and improvise a plan on the spot, seeing as after their many years of practice together, any carefully formulated plan would be instantly seen though by Saber. With that in mind, blocking her first attack came first.

While Carnwennan's ability to shroud its user in shadow was mighty indeed, so was it limited in its use. In order for the user to hide themselves in shadows cast by other objects, a shadow had to exist in the first place, and as such, they could not step out of it lest they were willing to expose herself. The chain, whose end he had already tossed to the side to properly dual wield his twin swords, lead directly to him on a straight path, so that was where he could expect her to come at him.

That knowledge alone relieved a massive burden on his mind, but this anxiousness was immediately replaced by the agony of waiting.

A fraction of a second passed him by.

And then another.

Knowing from which direction the attack would come was one thing, but not knowing when was another. His concentration couldn't waver for a single instant, and with no way to sense how close Saber had gotten, he had to maintain his focus at its peak throughout the entire time.

Another infinitesimally small unit of time passed by, his strained focus wasted, and though not even a second had passed in real-time, the burden on his nerves was all the greater.

Finally she emerged.

Curiously Saber had palmed her dagger almost all the way to its hand-guard, a very unconventional and even impractical way of wielding it if she expected to slash it at him, but Shirou didn't have time to worry about it. He immediately raised both Kanshou and Bakuya in front of him, crossing them in anticipation of catching Carnwennan's thrust, when suddenly-

 _"_ _Eh…?"_

Saber let it go.

It wasn't that she threw it, but she merely loosened her grip on it and… let it go. Even though she was traveling fast enough that this mundane act alone would cause the blade to continue to travel at her current velocity, it would have no force or weight supporting it if it were to impact against Shirou's swords, probably bouncing off harmlessly and falling to the ground. Just what was her aim?

It was then that, in a fit of horror, Shirou caught the soft whisper escaping Saber's lips, "Carnwennan: Ivory Dagger of the Fallen King".

She had invoked its name, and like the sun breaking through the canopy of a dense forest, her dagger burst into a radiance of pure white.

Carnwennan.  
When thrown, it could cleave anything it touched in half… but what if the definition of thrown also included "having left the user's hand". After all, as it was, her dagger was still imbued with the kinetic energy of her sprint and aimed at a target. All the requirement for the activation were fulfilled.

As Carnwennan edged ever closer and closer to his crossed swords of black and white, Shirou realized that he had messed up.

Upon contact, Kanshou and Bakuya split in two without offering any resistance to the King's dagger, the cross-section polished and clean as a mirror, while Saber stepped in close to follow up her attack. Her dagger had lost its momentum upon impacting again't Shirou's weapons so it posed no more threat to him, which is why her gauntleted fist was currently buried deeply into his stomach. The action was swift and purposeful, executed immediately after Shirou's attention was occupied by the recoil of having his monochromatic swords break in his hands.

Shirou forgot to breath, or rather, it would be accurate to say that he couldn't. His lungs were caved in by Saber's merciless punch, and a moment later his body finally caught up to her attack and was sent flying several meters through the air, continuing to skid helplessly across the ground even after he finally managed to land, and finally coming to a stop after the sheer force of Saber's unarmed strike was finally spent.

The blood in his mouth ironically tasted like metal.

It took him probably 5-10 seconds to regain the sensation of anything below chest level, so it was likely that he had probably broken his spine sometime upon landing. With it came the pain. Whatever tissue wasn't burst or torn, was either broken or fractured, and even then, the rest was bruised hot red without leaving any part of his skin unblemished. What he had just experienced was akin to jumping off a cliffside and tumbling down a jagged slope after all, and in the wake of recovering from this experience, it probably took him almost a minute before he could bring himself to stumble to his feet again. When he did however, half of his injuries had already vanished without a trace thanks to Avalon.

 _"_ _Carrot and stick, huh?"_ Shirou silently muttered to himself, still a little bit dizzy, as he spotted Saber standing several feet of way.

In her eyes shone the light of concern, which quickly expressed itself as a sigh of relief once she assured that he was safe. That was the extent of it however. Saber slowly bent over to pick up Carnwennan once more and raised it calmly before her, her expression tightening and her body waiting to spring back into action.

Shirou nodded.

They had come too far at this point to stop, and Avalon had proven to work. It was imperative that they measured the limits of his ability before…

No.

That wasn't it.

Shirou couldn't quite explain it, but his body was trembling. His mind was racing. His blood was boiling. What was this sensation? He had been in many battles before, but he had never felt like this. He was in the midst of battle and yet… it didn't feel unpleasant? Not like the urge to vomit when his ideals were laid bare by Archer, and unlike the crushing realization that if he couldn't stop Gilgamesh right then and there, millions of deaths would follow. So what was this? This feeling?

Shirou raised his gaze and looked upon Saber.

 _"_ _Ahh…"_

Her expression was calm and serious, and yet a radiant smile graced her lips. Her eyes shone brightly in a provocative light. As if saying, 'Come at me'. As if promising that she could take all he could offer and return it tenfold.

 _"…_ _so that's it,"_ Shirou finally realized, _"I must be making that same expression right now."_

That's right. They didn't stop because this battle was necessary or because they had come too far to stop… they didn't want to stop because it was fun. It was exhilarating. Intoxicating.

 _"_ _I must have spent too much time training with Saber… so this is the chivalry she always keeps talking about."_

They had been given the chance to go at each other with all their might.  
They could not have asked for better conditions.

Shirou raised his arms towards the sky and a crimson flash responded in kind. Though it wasn't lightning, one could have easily mistaken it for such considering how fast it carved its zigzagged trail into the air, until it finally found itself in Shirou's outstretched palm.

Gae Bolg.

Shirou had no way of keeping up with Saber's insane speed or strength, amplified to their limits by her Prana Burst, and even less so now that she had adapted an agility-based fighting style to draw out Carnwennan's full potential.

If that was the case, all Shirou had to do was mimic the dexterity of a hound.

The second Gae Bolg settled in his grip Shirou traced its inherent memories and the skill required for wielding it, Reinforcing his body according to the specifications granted to him, and settling into a low feral stance.

The earth shook in the aftermath of the two charging warriors.

Shirou smiled a wicked smile.

Saber responded in kind.

The meeting of their blades heralded the beginning of the new act.

* * *

The spectacle unfolding itself before her eyes was one that had far exceeded her expectations.

Having possibly already forgotten about Rin's presence already, the two warring combatants appeared visibly exhausted to the point that had it not been for Avalon within them, one or both of them would have either fallen unconscious due to blood-loss or possibly even died already… but that was only to be expected. After all, while Shirou was technically still classified as a human, the battle offered up before her was no less inferior to a clash between two Heroic Spirits.

Clutching her fist before her chest, Rin closed her eyes and focused on the abundant magical energy surging within her, checking for the hundredth time whether or not enough remained to sustain Avalon's regenerative abilities. Even though it was Saber's presence with allowed for this miracle to occur, the act nevertheless required an appropriate amount of mana equal to the magnitude of injury it intended to heal, and as such, Rin had made it her primary task to remain alert throughout the fierce battle and make sure she was prepared for whenever the need arose for her to offer up her remaining energy stores. But even then… the fight that had dragged on up to this point… one could say that it was a miracle the both of them were still standing, even after factoring in Avalon's might.

Should she call it a day and stop them?

Would they even listen?

Her aim had been to prepare Shirou for the worst possible scenario and accurately measure the absolute limit of his capabilities, but the issue which only now revealed itself to her was that he still had potential for so much more.

Any more than this and someone could get seriously wounded. Their heavy and unconditional reliance on Avalon was a carelessness they couldn't afford to begin with.

Should she do it then? Stop them right now?

Yet with a fire that burned so brightly in both their eyes… a determination so blinding it bordered on obsession… it was clear that neither of them would stop. That neither of them could.

They were companions, comrades, friends, and even more than that still. But right now they simply saw each other as something to overcome.

Rin knew that it was dangerous to allow them to keep going.  
And yet… for some reason she herself couldn't bring herself pry her eyes away from their battle.

* * *

"…damn."

Two nameless rapiers shot out as Shirou leapt passed by them in his retreat, though Saber managed to weave through his pincer attack with efficient grace before resuming her assault. Her ivory dagger drew golden arcs into the air as her quick jabs struck against the crimson shaft of Gae Bolg, each blow imbued with the strength and speed of her Prana Burst.

Again, spotting an opening Shirou ducked underneath a wide swipe and kicked off her armor to create some distance between them.

Once again, Saber did not allow Shirou to utilize Gae Bolg at its optimal range and kept their exchange restricted to ultra-close-quarters by sticking as close to him as possible.

Although Gae Bolg was the weapon of the most agile Heroic Spirit he could think of, Shirou himself was only capable of so much. He was only human. Though his tracing allowed him to mimic the original wielder's abilities and movements, he could only go as far as his mortal body allowed, and Reinforcement beyond his limits would result in self-destruction just as it had with Sayoarashi's chain. He could at the very least keep up with Saber now, but the cumbersome length of a spear was an ill-match for the fluidity and flexibility of a dagger. If he could only create some distance, he would hold the unequivocal advantage in range and be able to keep Saber at bay, but she was no doubt aware of that and thus kept pressuring him with her continued assault.

Already his body was covered in a myriad of grazed cuts and bruises, his palms sore from withstanding the rattling force of Saber's attacks. Although she lacked the crushing might a two-handed longsword would have awarded her, Carnwennan was not a weapon to be underestimated. It was quick and fast, but more importantly, a bona fide A Ranked Noble Phantasm. Once supplementing herself with her Prana Burst, the loss of raw power was quickly forgotten and replaced with the other benefits this weapon granted her.

Having overextended a powerful thrust with her right arm, Saber was momentarily caught off-balance, and as expected, Shirou's crimson spear-head had already traveled halfway towards the center of her sternum, an attack purposefully centered at her core in order to minimize the chance of dodging it. And yet…

As soon as Shirou thought his attacks would finally land, Saber's form was wreathed in shadow and disappeared from sight, the bladed edge of Gae Bolg instead scraping against her now indiscernible chest-plate and nicking her clothen under-armor, but leaving her flesh otherwise unharmed.

That's right, this is what had been causing Shirou no ends of trouble.

Although Saber kept her physical form when using Carnwennan's ability to melt into shade, meaning that he could still technically reach out and grab her even without being able to visually perceive her, it was next to impossible to accurately hit an invisible target. Each and every time his blows got close to striking her, she would slip out of his reach and reset the conditions of the battlefield, before charging back in from an angle which left him the most exposed.

"Tch!"

Shirou pressed his teeth together as his muscles labored to spin Gae Bolg around his body and guide it towards his lower left hip. A mere instant after the lance slapped into his open palm and rooted into his protective stance, Saber leapt out and let another mighty blow shatter against his side. This time his knees almost buckled from the pressure.

This flexible and indirect fighting style.  
Her tendency to stick to the shadows and elude sight.  
The surgical precision of her attacks.

When wielding Carnwennan Saber was nothing like the knight he knew, and almost…

"…like an Assassin."

Now that he said it out loud it made more sense, but had Saber been summoned as an Assassin as opposed to a Saber, this would have probably been the form she'd have taken. Servant Vessels were restricted templates created to limit the abundant power of a single Heroic Spirit and constrain it into a more manageable form, but with her old weapons restored to her, Saber had truly become and even more formidable foe.

Wait. Did Shirou even have the luxury to contemplate such irrelevant thoughts in the heat of battle!?

Hold on, something wasn't right. Taking quick note of Saber's expression it would seem to now sport a visible frown, meaning that she was clearly displeased about something. Was it his off-handed comparison likening her to an Assassin? Either way, for a brief instant her flow was interrupted and her mind distracted. This was the chance Shirou had been waiting for. If he were to waste this opportunity he would likely never be able to escape from this stalemate again and eventually succumb to fatigue, in which case his only option was to get rid of Carnwennan right now and force her to use Excalibur. A superior weapon it may be, but its simple and straight-forward nature was also its weakness, a directness that he could possibly exploit in a dangerous gamble.

After what felt like an eternity of having his wits pushed to the limits of exhaustion, Shirou finally allowed himself a weak grin in hopes of his gamble's success.

"Gae…" the chanting of his weapon's name was accompanied by the sharp influx of magical energy.

Saber's eyes widened in shock.

Without a moment of hesitation she immediately retreated out of range to avoid the attack she was only all too familiar with, but her overreaction based on her past experience with Lancer was exactly what Shirou had counted on in this case. Once out of range, Gae Bolg's curse of causality ceased to function seeing as the "act of impaling" still had to at least be possible to some extent. Knowing that, Shirou knew that Saber would have taken precautions when faced with this weapon and be prepared to retreat at a moment's notice, but all that meant was that she had finally given him the time he needed to prepare his own assault.

Too late did Saber realize that Shirou's magical energy was not poured into the spear, but into his own Magic Circuits instead. She had fallen for his bluff.

Unceremoniously letting go of the spear and letting it fall to his feet, Shirou kicked it head-first towards Saber as she was in the midst of running back at him again, forcing her to block it and locking down her movements for an additional second.

Which was all he needed to utter a mere two words, "Trace on."

His projections were completed in a flash as they crystalized from his pure Prana behind his back. Much like monochromatic wings, 3 pairs of his iconic dual blades spread themselves wistfully upon their creation and leered down at the swordswoman that would become their victim, fluttering in response to Shirou's ruthless charge as he intended to engage Saber head-on.

 _"Divine skill, flawless and firm…"_

Saber's face froze after recognizing the first aria of his ultimate technique, her body sliding back a pace to ready herself for the oncoming onslaught, but Shirou was already one step ahead. Having reached back and grasped the handles of the first pair, he let them loose in a curved arc aimed at Saber's unprotected neck, the trajectory of their path intended to intersect at the very moment they made contact with her skin. The afterimages of black and white drew a beautiful cross, however…

With a single charged slash of Carnwennan she was able to send both of them flying thanks to the sheer force of her attack, though both parties were aware that this was merely the beginning.

Shirou had now closed the gap, close enough to embrace Saber had they not been in a fight.

His outstretched palms had been empty just a second before, but now they were accompanied by the unmatched presence of a fresh pair of monochromatic blades.

 _"…strength moves mountains…"_

As if called back by Shirou's words of power, the previous pair that had only just been deflected came spiraling back with vicious tenacity, Bakuya taking the lead and Kanshou following just behind. With frightening familiarity Saber twisted her body to the side to avoid the looming death swooping in from behind and struck the Kanshou held in Shirou's hands, expending a burst of magical energy by invoking Prana Burst at the very moment of impact in order to reduce the blade to little more than dust.

Yet the barrage continued.

 _"…blade cuts water…"_

This time it was Kanshou from the back and the Bakuya in his hands which pincered Saber from two directions at once, her body already slightly off-balance from dodging the earlier attack. Even if one was aware of what was coming, this ultimate move was designed with the intention of unleashing one lethal blow after another and completely overwhelming one's opponent. If Saber remained as she was she would have no chance of surviving this attack unscathed, but unfortunately Saber too was in possession of a trump card.

Her left hand wielded Carnwennan so her right remained empty. At least it had been until just now.

Her gauntleted palm wrapped around the grip of her Divine Blade, and together, both Carnwennan and Excalibur obliterated Kanshou and Bakuya as she spun wildly to strike both swords simultaneously and grind them into dust, the brutal force of her attack so overwhelming that naught remained of them after she was done. Truly, her attack was both fierce and beautiful... and yet it left her completely unguarded for a mere fraction of a second in its aftermath.

It was right then…

 _"…two great men, shared life!"_

The last pair of swords appeared out of nowhere and slashed her chest form both sides while her stance was out of balance. It was a perfect hit. An inescapable prison. The ultimate technique meant to guarantee victory. And yet… and yet…

"Invisible Air!"

Mere millimeters before Kanshou and Bakuya could impact with her pristine silver armor, a cocoon of highly concentrated air enveloped her body and forcefully knocked his swords aside, causing him to lose his grip as they harmlessly dropped to their feet.

That's right. The only ways to defeat _his_ "Triple-Linked Crane Wings" were to either be in possession of an omni-directional defense, or by ignoring the damage and gambling everything on a suicidal assault on the user. As the person who had overseen Shirou's martial prowess for the past few years she was intimately familiar with this technique as well as the ways to counter it. It would have never worked on her to begin with.

…

Nor was this Shirou's intention.

Invisible Air was truly a formidable defense as well as an unforgiving offense, but for all its might it possessed a single weakness. Its reliance on wind. Conjuring up a storm of this level in order to block Shirou's final hit left Saber's sight temporarily obscured by the howling winds, and this was the window of opportunity he had been gambling on all along.

His lips parted to give shape to his magical energy, "Trace Overedge".

"Wha-!?"

Not even Saber could have expected this underhanded scheme, and in the unlikely scenario that she did, the opening awarded to him by his Triple-Linked Crane Wings would have left her unable to act regardless.

The discarded monochromatic blades at her feet suddenly splintered and cracked, their very essence screaming and screeching in pain as the magical energy infused within them altered and enhanced their fundamental structure. All at once, they grew almost twice their original length and deeply impaled Sabers legs, anchoring her in place by digging viciously into her flesh until embedding themselves into her bones.

The agony of pain paralyzed her limbs but Saber knew that there was more still yet to come. All this effort simply to root her into place? No. Another attack was coming. Bigger. Better. The final blow to crown his efforts. Raising her sight she spotted Shirou after he had already leapt high into the air, his entire body almost dwarfed by a massive axe-sword chiseled out of a single slab of pure rock. This wasn't a weapon to cut or cleave. This was a weapon to mercilessly crush.

Saber raised both Carnwennan and Excalibur while Shirou brutally drove Berserker's crude blade down towards her wounded figure.

Both combatants unleashed deafening roars as their wills and weapons collided, triggering a deafening explosion that tore apart the very fabric of the air.

…

In the wake of their explosion Shirou stumbled forwards after eventually landing back on the ground, his knees weak and wobbly. As he attempted to prop himself up by sticking his axe-sword into the ground, he ended up falling over before realizing that it had bee cut clean in half, golden-white shimmers lingering at the polished cross-section as a testament to Carnwennan and Excalibur's might. They had been the superior weapons in the end, so it was only a given that his sword would buckle first. Regardless, it wasn't as if this had been a fruitless endeavor either.

"…well done Shirou," Saber's warm voice called out to him from behind, as when he turned to see, he was shocked to witness the horrid state that she was in.

Her left arm and been almost completely severed as a deep gash nearly split her shoulder all the way to her chest. Blood was profusely gushing out of her wound and staining her beautiful armor and dress into a deep red, her skin looking several shades paler due to blood-loss.

"Saber!?"

"It is fine Shirou, the blame for this wound is my own as I have done you the dishonor of holding back."

"No Saber, don't even worry about that! More importantly, are you alright!?"

"As I said, I am fine Shirou. See?" she wasn't just saying that to comfort him. As Saber pushed aside the torn fabric of her blood-stained dress, it became obvious the outer skin on her shoulder had already regenerated and the remaining bones and muscle fibers were likely being mended at that very moment. Even though he had seen this effect a million times by now, the unparalleled healing ability of Avalon astonished Shirou each and every time.

"I guess so…" Shirou had to suppress the urge to mention that he was worried about her, as that would have only been an insult to her as a warrior.

Twice he had wounded her already, but both times it was only thanks to a long and arduous process of wearing her down until she finally revealed an opening. This wasn't a feat he could continue to accomplish. If not for Saber's alert instincts anticipating his intent, then for the simple fact that his human body couldn't keep going for much longer. He could already slowly feel himself approaching his limit. Yet still, despite reason dictating that humans should have had no chance standing up to Servants, here he was, capable of holding Saber at bay and even managing to wound her. He couldn't help but allow himself a sense of pride and accomplishment… but his naivety would soon be crushed in the wake of the King's true power.

"I see…" Saber calmly whispered, "…so it seems that you have gotten to a level where I have no choice but to face you with Excalibur."

Shirou's hopes crumbled away like dust. It was as if he had conveniently forgotten up to this point, or maybe even subconsciously ignored one crucial detail. Saber had only just drawn Excalibur.

"Carnwennan has served me well. Thank you Shirou for allowing me to experience fighting with it again, but as of now I could not bear facing you with anything but my chosen sword."

Contrary to what she said, Saber returned Excalibur to her sheath however.

"T-then why did you put it away?" Shirou couldn't help but stutter when faced with the overwhelming pressure that hit him just now. The battle had yet to even truly begin.

"Like I said, I have no need of Carnwennan anymore."

Shirou trembled at an almost absurd release of magical energy.

He forgot to breathe. His spine shuddered. His eyes widened.

The amount of Prana that was violently shoved into Carnwennan right now was not on the level of a Noble Phantasm… no… this was something even beyond.

"Saber, are you sure about this!? A Broken Phantasm isn't something to be used lightly!"

Saber merely shook her head and motioned for Shirou to get up and prepare himself, "Before I knew it, you had grown capable enough to oppose me at my full strength. You are strong Shirou, and I couldn't imagine a more worthy warrior against whom I am willing to give my all. As you instructor… and as your friend, I cannot express my pride for your progress," her smile was loving and honest, but it remained on her lips for only a moment before her eyes narrowed down again in concentration.

"Prepare yourself Shirou. Please use Avalon to escape if this is too much for you."

He hurried to his feet and tried to clear his dry throat, but came to realize that his mouth had dried out too.

This was bad. This was really bad. He could always survive by using Avalon as a last ditch effort of course, but something told him that he shouldn't until the last possible moment. It was not a rational thought, it was one that came from his heart.

The sweat running down his skin was cold as ice, but the fire boiling in his blood burned like a fiery blaze. His eyes locked on to the unstable form of Carnwennan, ready to implode on itself even now. Shirou closed his left eye to prepare for the next projection. He would need all the focus he could gather.

It seemed the world itself gasped in expectation and held its breath, so uncanny was the silence surrounding them in the seconds that existed before they took action. It was Saber who finally broke the spell as she proudly sung the full title of her blade.

"CARNWENNAN: IVORY DAGGER OF THE FALLEN KING!"

Like a shooting star the crumbling dagger shot across the distance between the two, tearing itself apart under the weight of its own magical energy, and Shirou was there to receive it. He was waiting for it. He reached out his arm toward it and faced the King's challenge.

"RHO AIAS: THE SEVEN RINGS THAT COVER THE FIERY HEAVENS!"

4 blazing flower petals sprouted from his palm to intercept the shining star, catching it in their embrace, although the outermost petal immediately splintered upon impact with the volatile projectile. Aias was a shield not easily pierced, but a weapon which contained the conceptual effect of "splitting anything it touched in half" in the form of a Broken Phantasm was a lot even for Rho Aias to withstand. The only reason that the Aias didn't shatter at the very instant of their collision was because it too was imbued with a conceptual effect, the indomitable ability to provide absolute protection against any thrown weapon.

Carnwennan, whose effect only manifest when thrown.  
Rho Aias, effective against anything that was thrown.

Currently the two armaments raged a deadly conflict between their own inherent conceptual properties, but Shirou didn't have the time to wait and see which would ultimately reign superior. Having constructed the first 4 layers to intercept Carnwennan, he was now ready for the next step. He knew Saber would not sit idly by and watch the outcome, she was the type of person that would charge in and deliver the final blow after realizing that Carnwennan alone had not been enough. In fact, he could already spot flashes of her silver armor at the edge of his vision, which only spurred him on to hurry up.

His mind raced overtime and his Magic Circuits burned with the heat of a burning sun, but ultimately he knew that he could manage.

"My body is made out of swords.…."

The first line of the poem that defined him, a single-line aria that enabled him to empower his unique magecraft. With it, Shirou's trembling body managed to construct 3 additional layers of Rho Aias on top of the impacting Carnwennan, trapping the ensuing detonation within itself and containing it as best as humanly possible. It was practically impossible to entirely negate or cancel out a Broken Phantasm of this level, but if his aim was to redirect it, then he could make it possible. He would have to.

By this point Saber had already managed to cross the distance between them, her sprint naturally aided by Prana Burst, and came to a sudden halt right behind him. Excalibur was held high, its sharp edge gleaming with the intention of carving into Shirou's flesh, but he wouldn't let it come to that. He had known she would come, an thus he was ready.

Frantically twisting his body and trying everything in his power to get his body to turn just an instant faster, Shirou slammed Rho Aias into Excalibur just as it descended upon him and briefly halted its advance. That being said, this too was a gamble.

Rho Aias was the ultimate defense against any thrown projectiles, and as such, it existed as the perfect countermeasure against long-ranged attacks.

That protection did not extended towards close-ranged attacks.

Harshly grinding against the first layer of the Aias and gradually shearing away at its protection, Saber pressed her entire weight into slowly drilling her way through Shirou's greatest defense layer by layer. Aias was still a mighty shield of course, but against a Divine Blade of the highest Rank it had no chance of holding out for long.

Nor did it need to.

As Saber was about to crush the first layer with relative ease, the entire surface already riddled with cracks and fissures, her mind was overtaken by panic upon noticing that it wasn't just the first layer that could barely keep itself from bursting, but the outermost 5. This could only mean one thing. Shirou had never meant to contain her Broken Phantasm; his aim was to redirect it all along.

Sensing an overwhelming premonition of dread, Saber changed the angle of her sword and instantly released the entirety of Invisible Air surrounding it. All of it. Without hesitation. The full unbridled extent of it was pushed even further by releasing her Prana Burst at maximum capacity. Her aim was the very outer edge of the shield. Collapsing it first would give the explosion a pathway to escape, but she was unsure how much energy could be diverted that way.

The blazing shield screeched.  
The golden sword sang.

The resulting explosion was one of unprecedented scale, shaking the world and sending deep tremors as far as the horizon, each and every buried sword humming to the tune of the possible collapse of the Reality Marble. It had been as if a meteor had struck the earth, the resulting plume of dust reaching as far as the clouds and blocking out the sun, and when the aftermath of their clash finally settled, two collapsed figures could be spotted next to a crater vast enough to easily fit an Olympic sized pool.

One was Saber.

Her disheveled hair hung loosely at her shoulders, her ribbon normally holding her braids in place nowhere to be seen. Her formidable armor was splintered with numerous and nigh uncountable amount of cracks, shards peeling off and crumbling into dust, until finally her entire armor shattered like glass and vanished into glowing mist. While her body miraculously remained intact after Avalon's intervention, she was left with nothing but her elegant battle-dress, torn and ripped as it was.

The other was Shirou.

Arguably in a worse condition than Saber, he seemed physically unharmed, or at least as unharmed as one could be after withstanding the blast of something akin to a nuke, and it was likely that the remaining 3 layers of Rho Aias that existed between them shielded him enough to prevent any lethal damage. The true harm was dealt to the mind however. Rho Aias was Shirou's greatest shield, yet its nature required for him to provide constant magical energy to it so long as it remained intact, establishing a nigh intimate bond between himself and the armament. If it were to be damaged or destroyed, naturally this meant that the feedback would be felt as pain by the user, a punishment equivalent to the damage it received. 7 petals were shattered in the blink of an eye, and as such, Shirou currently found himself unable to move as he was reduced to a tortured mess. His mind and body paralyzed from torment, he was clutching his head with enough force to pierce his skin and draw blood… but fortunately he too was saved by the warm embrace of Avalon as it veiled him from his suffering.

Both combatants were battered and broken, neither no longer in a condition to fight.

And yet one heaved herself up.  
And yet the other stumbled to his feet.

Their throats were raspy from their greedy breaths and their muscles prickled with the sore pain of exhaustion, but the fact that the other remained standing gave them reason enough to continue their fight.

The purpose of their battle and long since been forgotten.

The only reason which continued to drive them was their shared desire to measure themselves against the other.

Saber raised Excalibur.

Shirou tightened his fist.

And so the battle entered its final stage.


	3. To realize that success is impossible…

The earth rumbled.

A deep growl reverberated across the horizon.

No beasts existed in Shirou's Inner World, neither Phantasmal nor Divine, and so these ominous tremors were caused by one thing and thing only.

Swords.

Bladed. Blunt. Divine. Demonic.  
Crude forgeries and magnificent masterpieces. Within his realm the quantity and quality of his swords totaled as high as the number of grains on a sandy beach. Like a tireless swarm they were now pulled from their earthen sheath and made to gather above the golden-crowned King, once again covering her in an oppressive metallic shade.

"Not wasting any time, are you Shirou?" Saber flashed a confident grin.

Shirou smiled weakly in response, "After that crazy Broken Phantasm of yours, I don't really have much of a choice anymore. I can't keep going for much longer, I'm sorry to say that I may already have approached my limit."

"Just as well."

With an authoritative nod, Saber stabbed Excalibur deep into the ground before her and used the secured pommel as a hand-rest. This pose of hers was neither tense nor relaxed, yet it carried the full weight of her regal nature nonetheless. It was the stance of a King offering her respects to the opponent before her.

"Arturia Pendragon, King of Britain. Come at me!"

"Emiya Shirou…" caught up by the sheer presence of her overflowing Charisma, he found himself answering her call without thinking, "…housewife…." only to mutter something absurd in return.

Saber's brilliant smile remained undiminished however, and even softened warmly in response to Shirou's humbling reply. To cover up for his embarrassment he instead attempted to wipe the running sweat from his brow, only to realize this sleeve was already soaked and torn as well, offering him little relief.

 _"_ _Oh well…"_

There was no way that Shirou could have ever stood up to Saber anyway, both in physical might or mental fortitude. She was an experienced warrior whereas he was merely a civilian who just happened to have stumbled into a world much too big for himself. It was because of his awareness of his own inferiority that messing up here and there against Saber didn't bother him too much. It was only to be expected. He was only a human. It was a ridiculous notion to assume that he could beat her.

And yet his Magic Circuits burned.  
And yet his swords soared through the sky.

At some point Shirou had started challenging this unchangeable truth. Had started to believe that there was a chance. That he could beat her.  
Saber had ignited a defiant blaze within him, and the unbearable heat now sought release.

He could beat her.  
He would beat her.  
He needed to.

As for why, he did not know, nor did he have the capacity to think about that now.

Mimicking the very beginning of their fight, Shirou had once again darkened the brilliant blue sky with a mass of countless blades, only this time Saber no longer carried Carnwennan. The shadows that had granted her escape previously would no longer grant her refuge, and thus Shirou repeated the same move once again. Whether it was unfair was irrelevant to him, he simply wanted to answer Saber's challenge with all his might just as she faced him with all of hers.

The floating swords trembled for a brief second before launching themselves at their single target all at once.

Despite their overwhelming odds however, Saber remained unmoving. Unyielding.  
Though it might be more accurate to say that she was in a state of deep focus, the air around her swirling in anticipation of her next move.

Wait… the air was swirling?

It was the most trivial of phenomena to note as hundreds of swords were made to descend upon a single target, but in Saber's case the precious few seconds granted to her by Shirou's inaction were not spent in vain. The Invisible Air she had expended in her last attack had now been partially restored to her blade, and while it was yet insufficient to conceal Excalibur's golden radiance from sight, the gathered currents were only waiting for the King's command.

At once she channeled her iconic thaumaturgy, causing violent currents of wind to gather around her blade and lash out at the very air around her. As opposed to coating Excalibur and disguising its form however, the volatile gusts were instead guided along the path of the sword's edge, made to travel down into the earth and deeper still, their unbridled energies finding themselves trapped in a prison of perfected darkness.

Saber was Shirou's mentor, his friend, and something even beyond that. It would stand to reason that his most powerful yet also most brash and straight-forward attack would be one she knew how to counter best.

The ground around her cracked and splintered. The magical winds she had forced into the earth now sought release and would take any means it took to attain it.

"Strike Air!"

At her command the ground below her feet bloated up like an inflated pillow and burst into a violent aftermath of dust and debris, the forceful detonation of purely concentrated air detonating outwards from a confined space and spreading the obscuring cloud far and wide to perfectly obscure Saber's figure once again.

Shirou groaned in annoyance as his opponent perfectly evaded his most obliterating attack once again.

Against Gilgamesh it was akin to staring down the barrel of a gun whenever his Gate of Babylon widened to shower him with the overwhelming power of his abundant Noble Phantasms, the very idea of him discarding mythical and divine weaponry of the highest rank like spare bullets incomprehensible and astounding. And yet he was dominating. Devastating. For every weapon one threw at him he had multiple others to answer one's provocation, and it was only thanks to Unlimited Blade Work's unique gimmick that Shirou was ultimately allowed to surpass him in terms of speed.

Nevertheless, now that the tables had turned and it was him performing that very attack against Saber, he despaired at being unable to hit her with it even once. Was the void which existed between them truly so vast?

 _"_ _No…"_ Shirou's eyebrows furrowed.

If a gap existed between them he just needed to leap across it!

Saber had found another method of disguising herself, the steady rain of his swords crashing aimlessly into the large cloud of dust, which merely meant that his first step was to strip away her precious cover and decide this battle once and for all.

Shirou's left arm darted diagonally behind him in expectation of a smoothened wooden sheath. It answered his call. Each and every sword that filled the landscape of his Inner World was his companion and partner, their relationship built on the understanding and trust of two equals accepting one another. His Origin was that of "Sword", and hence was the culmination of his very existence.

The swords around him were tools, and so was he.  
He existed to serve others, and so did they.

They were one and the same. His body was made of swords just as they were given life by him. It was because of this that they did not struggle when wielded by him, why they did not resist to find themselves in the hands of a different owner. Neither did he wield them, nor did he own them. He was one of them, and so they lent him their strength.

The sword which answered his call this time was Hige-kiri, a katana once used by Minamoto-no-Yorimitsu himself.

In a flash the inherent memories and experiences of the blade flooded into his mind and taught him everything there was to wielding it to absolute perfection. The sword stirred joyously in his embrace as he positioned it at his side while lowering his stance, his body coiling forward in preparation for the following attack. His left thumb nudged the beautiful hand-guard and revealed the tiniest glint of steel hidden beneath the decorative sheath.

"Hige-kiri: Unerring Squall of Decapitation", Shirou invoked the Noble Phantasm with barely a whisper, his tense body lashing out at full force.

With lightning speed Hige-kiri's blade reflected a brief shimmer as it caught one of the sun's rays, yet the very next instant it had already been returned to the dark confines of its sheath as if the act of drawing it had been nothing but an illusion. With unrivaled speed Shirou had performed Battōjutsu of the highest degree by drawing and returning the blade in a single graceful motion, though ultimately Hige-Kiri was not famed for its speed. No. Its inherent ability took on a different form, one that had already manifested upon this world. After all, it was not a sword which cut with a blade of forged steel, but one which severed by shooting out a highly-pressurized slash of pure air.

With a single arc of highly-condensed wind the enormous dust cloud was immaculately split half, so perfectly in fact that for a moment it appeared like a single solid object before the borders of the smooth incision began to blur again. However, at that very instant a small vacuum was created in the wake of Hige-Kiri's supersonic pressure wave, the ensuing rush of air powerful enough to dispel the rest of the dust cloud with barely any effort.

 _"_ _There!"_

A single blur charged directly at him from within the dissipating dust, her form only partially obscured at this point. However she was much closer than he had expected. Nary a second had passed and she had already crossed half the distance between them, which was only a testament to her frightening speed. Recalling his swords would only endanger himself if he were to try to pin her down at this point, so Shirou immediately dismissed the idea and settled on a more direct approach. Why recall his swords when he already carried one his very palm?

Emptying his lungs with a long drawn-out breath and shutting his blood-shot eyes closed, Shirou tightened his grip on Hige-Kiri once more.

To do what he needed to do he had to be faster, so he reinforced his body to make the impossible possible.  
Faster. He pumped magical energy into his Magic Circuits without restraint.  
Even faster. His flesh was enhanced to its very limits, nay, just slightly beyond them. His nerves screeched in agony as his mind was filled with blinding white pain, the blood vessels in his arms boiling from the heat of his forced reinforcement as they came close to bursting from the accumulating pressure.

Once again, this time tasting blood as he coughed its name, Shirou willed his eyes to open; his very intent to strike down the honorable knight before him.

"Hi-" Shirou ignored his creaking bones and tearing muscles as he focused his all on unleashing the Noble Phantasm contained within the blade, "HIKE-KIRI: UNERRING SQUALL OF DECAPITATION!"

Not one. Not two. No, not even three lines were traced by the sword.

Eight.

Eight times Hige-kiri was pulled from its sheath.

Eight times Hige-kiri was returned to its sheath.

Eight simultaneous invocations were performed by the magus Emiya Shirou, and the strain of doing so shattered the wooden sheath in his left hand into thousand fine splinters.

Aligned into an octagonal shape, Shirou had aimed each slash at a different body part of Saber's to make dodging it next to impossible, each one meant to sever either limb or artery with cold precision.

Furthermore this arrangement served yet another function.

An octagon.

By carving out an explicit outline he purposefully left a gaping hole at the center, a void intended to direct the eightfold currents of wind of each individual vacuum into a single concentrated blast equaling the force of a locomotive. What Shirou was aiming for was a two-part attack that functioned under the same principles as a Shaped Explosive Charge, a device used by the military to puncture the thick armor of metal tanks.

Unlike his Triple-Linked Crane Wings, Saber had never witnessed this move before, nor could she have. It was a strategy he had improvised on the spot after the memories of Hige-Kiri flowed into him, and as such, it was perfectly unexpected and nearly unavoidable, a two-pronged slashing attack to incapacitate an enemy's limbs followed by the brute impact of a Shaped Charge powerful enough to crush metal. He would end it here. He had to, since he honestly wasn't so sure how long he could keep his torn body from falling over any longer. Avalon was continuously working overtime to keep his body from self-destructing, but even Avalon had a limit to how much it could heal at once.

"Please…" he prayed, "…go down with this one."

And the King of Knights answered his call.

Retrieving her shield Wynebgwrthucher from her back, Saber once again invoked Invisible Air and had it congregate around its rounded shape. The resulting vortex, nay, the resulting tempest of pure unadulterated air swirled atop its surface and stood as an indomitable wall against herself and anything that dared to oppose her charge.

"No way…" Shirou powerlessly dropped his arms to his side, "…she's carrying a localized tornado on her shield!?"

While each of Hige-Kiri's pressurized slashes were no doubt lethal had they been allowed to meet with their targets directly, their existence was ultimately singular. They were single phenomena that existed independently, whereas the vortex surrounding Wynebgwrthucher was continuous and ever-lasting, ceaselessly drawing in more and more of the surrounding air.

And so was the outcome decided.

As each of Hige-Kiri's slashes collided with Wynebgwrthucher, each was capable of significantly chipping away at the Invisible Air enveloping it to the extent of pushing back and slowing Saber's advance, but for every dent and crack that was made, more air would rush in and take its place. It was a crushing display of overpowering might, the unquestionable dominance of the Martyr King given shape.

Finally, when all of Hige-Kiri's attacks had been vanquished, all that remained was the Vacuum Bomb waiting to detonate against her shield, and surprisingly, Saber simply allowed it to happen… but not with her behind it.

Absorbing the dangerous impact with Wynebgwrthucher and ducking underneath it, Saber didn't blink an eye as her shield was sent spiraling violently across the rolling rills and disappeared beyond the horizon at an irretrievable distance, but it wasn't like Saber cared much for this loss in the first place.

Now. With nothing else obstructing her path, Saber charged her legs with Prana once more and took single step. All at once, her tattered body filled Shirou's entire vision, her sword raised high and ready to cleave him in half.

"Shit…"

Shirou's muscles screeched in pain as forced his body to yank the nearby handle of Hiza-Maru from the earth in a helpless attempt to intercept Saber's crushing blow, but his form was already broken and his defensive attempt too rushed, so the blade merely shattered on impact and rendered him utterly defenseless. Excalibur cut into his chest and splintered his sternum with little to no resistance, blowing him away several meters all while he was trailing a river of blood; his torso was practically sawn in half. Before Avalon could catch up and heal his injuries or the metallic blades within him could knit him back together, a mouthful of blood managed to seep into his lungs. There was no reason to fight the urge, so Shirou didn't resist as he was made to vomit the blood-clotted contents of his lungs and stomach, spitting out the rest once he had recovered.

 _"_ _Ahhh,"_ Shirou contemplated with a cleared mind, _"So this is it"._

His knees shook unsteadily as he tried to stand up again, falling over twice until he finally succeeded, _"This is what it means to be a 'Saber', huh?"_

Such indomitable might. Such unwavering strength. That ability to crush any attack and penetrate any defense. The right to barrel through any obstacle with nothing but brute force and finesse. A despairing difference in ability, and the elegance to perform these acts without blinking an eye.

This was why the Saber Class was said to be the strongest. Sure, while this reputation was mainly built on the fact that they were the most well-rounded Class, in the presence of Arturia the argument of who would win in a contest of strength become null and void. Shirou had no hope of ever beating her.

The towering figure of the golden blue Servant as she presided over the settling dust was both awe-inspiring and terrifying. The golden hair framing her lovely face shone as brightly as a crown with the sun nestled behind her neck, the very presence of her royal glory both intimidating and beautiful.

This was the first time that Shirou had faced Saber in serious battle, but he felt like he finally understood.

"Shirou…" she horridly whispered, her voice filled with concern.

"It's fine Saber. I'm fine. It's not like you weren't injured either, and look, Avalon is already patching me up as always… thank you for not holding back, I think I learned something extremely important just now."

"…is that so?"

"Yes… and for that reason I can't afford to let this go on any longer."

Shirou stretched his arms towards the skies, calling forth his final projection.

It started with a golden shimmer flickering in his hands, though this single spark soon burst into brilliant lightning as the sheer energy required for the manifestation of the sword snaked around Shirou's body like vines leeching him of every last shred of his Prana in order to give the golden light its form.

The broken earth trembled.

The clouded skies parted.

Simply calling forth this blade shook the very foundations of his Reality Marble.

"Hoou~" Saber's expression changed completely after laying eyes on her old companion, "I did not expect you to draw Caliburn against me. Are you truly prepared to do this, Shirou?"

He answered with a pained grin, the violent feedback of the projection no doubt taking its toll, "Your Excalibur is a weapon granted to you by the Phantasmals, a gift to you from the Lady of the Lake, and a Divine Construct of a level I could never hope to imitate, let alone match with any of my other counterfeits. However…"

The ethereal blade in his outstretched arms sparked.

"…Caliburn was forged. It was created by human hands, and while it no doubt carries Phantasmal influence, it remains a weapon whose fundamental structure and composition I can comprehend. But most importantly, it is a weapon you treasure dearly Saber, and as such, its image burns bright and clear in your memories… in my dreams. By now I should be able to trace it flawlessly as a C Ranked Noble Phantasm."

"Is that so?" Saber raised Excalibur above her head, that stance unmistakably the one reserved for the invocation of her own ultimate Noble Phantasm, "You would oppose Excalibur with the strength of a C Ranked Caliburn?"

"Well, it ordinarily is a B Ranked Phantasm so there isn't much I can do… unless…" a heavy shockwave of dense magical energy rocked the world as Caliburn finally materialized, its pristine splendor no less that of Excalibur, "…a single requirement is fulfilled. 'When the owner turns into a proper, perfected king its power will become appropriate for a holy sword', was it not? In life you have achieved this goal and ascended Caliburn to its full potential, and even when considering the deterioration in Rank due to projection, it should still qualify as a bona fide A Ranked Noble Phantasm. Your Excalibur is of A++ Rank if I remember correctly, meaning that if Caliburn were to become a Broken Phantasm, I'll have almost caught up to you, Saber."

"Never would I have thought to measure my sword against another Divine Blade, and for that to be Caliburn no less. Shirou, you are aware what could happen if we allowed two Holy Swords to clash?"

Shirou swallowed his fear and plucked the radiant sword out of the air with his right, while a black Japanese longbow appeared in his left.

"Are you two insane!?" a panicked voice, out of breath from having run the long distance to reach them, snapped the two mad warriors out of their reverie, "This is a sparring match! Why are you unleashing your Noble Phantasms against each other!? Carnwennan was bad enough, but with Caliburn and Excalibur the both of you are surely going to d-"

Rin's voice was immediately cut out as she vanished from existence, an act only made possible if she were ejected by the owner of the Reality Marble. In other words, Shirou.

"Shirou… you know that was a mistake."

"She'll probably be mad for a while… maybe even cut down on our food budget," he admitted with a wry smile.

"…"

"But it's not like I could have kept her here. She isn't safe here anymore. Unlimited Blade Works is already on the verge of collapsing, but I need it to last just a bit longer to contain… whatever it is that is going to happen next."

Saber silently regarded him with a calculated gaze, "Shirou, I'll ask you again. Are you sure you want to do this"

"Haha…" a dry raspy laugh escaped his throat, though it more accurately resembled a cough, "…if not now, then when? This is likely going to be my only opportunity to fight you like this. All I'm worried about is that you won't get too sentimental about breaking your old sword," his fatigue was palpable as his nervous system trembled from the massive strain placed on his Circuits by this single projection, his muscles on the verge of tearing apart merely by holding this fully charged Broken Phantasm Caliburn, pumped beyond its limits with all his remaining magical energy. And yet he had the audacity to be sarcastic.

Saber merely shook her head and restored a proud smile to her lips, "I have no intention of holding back Shirou, you will taste Excalibur at its most powerful".

Golden flakes of supercharged magical energy congregated around her Divine Blade and soon its unconfined glory burst upwards into the sky like a vicious torrent of pure light. Its ethereal radiance shone down on Shirou with such suffocating density that it nearly caused him to choke.

But his bow was already drawn, the string pulled taut by the Sword of Selection nestled in his grasp.

There was no need for words as both of them unleashed their attacks at the exact same time.

 **"** **EX-" "CALI-"**

The world around them fractured at the very thought of these two Holy Blades clashing at full force, quaking tremors shaking the earth and sky alike as Shirou's Reality Marble was unable to withstand the annihilation which followed.

 **"** **-CALIBUR!" "-BURN!"**

Two golden surges of unprecedented might were made to oppose each other…

…

…and the world turned white.

* * *

 **Author's Note**

Heya, ChristmasForJuan here ^^

First I want to thank anybody who made it this far and is still somehow invested in this rather simplistic short-story of mine. I realize that not many people have an interest in 'just' a fight scene with no additional meat to bite into, but considering that time grows sparse as one gets older I believe that settling on something shallow like this is enough of a compromise. In any case, moving on to the important stuff, I realize that I made some compromises in this story to get Shirou and Saber to act they way they did, seeing as it would have otherwise been impossible to get two people who care deeply for each other to fight, but I just want to assure everyone that I did not needlessly exaggerate their personality traits without reason.

Shirou's enjoyment of battle and Saber's tendency to get a bit rough with him if he teases her too much are inspired from /Stay Night's "Sparks Liner High" and "Brave leader Hungryheart". Yes, that's the actual title of the latter scene, and yes, it is absolutely worth checking it out if you want to see a hungry Saber exacting her revenge on Shirou for not feeding her lunch. Either way, I obviously had pull some strings for this fight of mine to happen, but I tried my best not to have my characters dip into OOC territory, so I hope you are satisfied with my portrayal of them. Accurately mimicking pre-existing personally traits of canon characters has always been one of my weaker points after all. Oh, and my apologies for Rin being relegated as a side-character during the latter chapters. The focus was obviously on Shirou and Saber, but Rin will get her chance to shine elsewhere, I'm sure.

With that out of the way, I quickly want to address the Caliburn scene in order to clear up any questions or concerns. You are right in assuming that Caliburn is normally only a B Ranked Noble Phantasm which only achieves A+ Rank upon its wielder becoming a worthy King. Shirou is neither a Knight nor a King, so under normal circumstances I would have never allowed for him to project a version of Caliburn post-ascension, but once again, the Visual Novels proved me wrong. In the Saber Route he actually projects a flawed version of Caliburn in a desperate attempt to defeat Berserker, and while it was only with Saber's help that we was ultimately able to kill him, before that he actually managed to sever his arm with a single swing by using a weakened version of Caliburn that shattered immediately after. This is a version of Shirou before he comprehends the full scope of his abilities mind you, but even then was able to project not the B Ranked version of Caliburn (or C ranked when accounting for degradation of Rank), but the A+ version (A after accounting for degradation). So yeah, at this point I figured that he was able to do so because the image of Caliburn recorded in Saber's memories was that of the perfected version, and as such, he is able to use this shortcut and simply project it in its final state already without having to worry about those pesky requirements.  
To give you guys my honest opinion, I think that's a little bullshit considering that once projected, Caliburn should revert to its former self in the hands of an unworthy wielder, but hey, Nasu's word is law so I am obliged to follow it xD  
In any case, one could always argue that this IS the case and Shirou has simply been deemed worthy by Caliburn either by his own merit, or the fact that he is quite literally Saber's 'sheath', and as such, is considered a part of her in Caliburn's eyes. Maybe it even considers the both of them as a single entity due to their shared connection. Whatever it might be, the fact remains that Caliburn's ascended form can be projected by Shirou.

Phew, I think that about does it for this Author's Note.  
I tried not to put one in every chapter thus far since I didn't want to bother you guys with my ramblings. I've done so plenty in the past, so I thought I'd shut up this time around. There will be one more chapter to round up the events of this little story of mine, and if you've been following the chapter titles, then you'd be able to accurately guess the setting. To be honest I actually have a few more ideas in mind that I'd like to explore, such as the involvement of Lord El-Melloi II and his apprentice Gray as representatives sent by the Clocktower, both of which have a strong connection to Saber; the former since she was a fellow competitor of Rider's, and the latter for being her distant descendant who is currently in possession of Rhongomyniad. The opportunity is too perfect not to seize, but alas, the story-line I have in mind if I were to continue this plot would be a tad too vast for me to wrap up during the paltry amount of time I have left before the end of summer. Now that Shirou has proven to be able to project the perfected version of Caliburn, I had also planned for the involvement of Mordred to let her open Character Arc finally find its conclusion by allowing Father and Son to finally meet, and it would help quite a lot for Shirou to grant her the opportunity to challenge the Sword of Selection in order to prove whether she's truly the King she aims to be. I've already made up my mind, but what do you think? Would Mordred be able to pull Caliburn out of the stone? To me there's only one answer, but it would be interesting to see what everybody else thinks on the matter ^^

...then again, something of that scale might be a bit too ambitious for a short-story that simply wanted to explore a cool fight.  
Oh, and as a quick trivial note: Were it not for that one scene in the Visual Novel where Shirou was able to project an A Ranked Caliburn, I would have used Mordred's Clarent in that final clash instead. It would have given that scene a lot more meaning but in a different context, so ultimately I am glad that I settled on Caliburn instead.

Well then, whether this story will grow or not is up in the air right now. I'll see you again at this battle's conclusion.


	4. And yet be capable of enduring patiently

An endless expanse of green and blue.

That was all this world was.

The cerulean sky was as clear and bright as still water's surface, the mellow gradient of vibrant blue unbroken and unblemished, leaving only the auspicious presence of snow-white clouds to provide a pleasant contrast of colors.

Beneath existed a sea of lively green. Each stem of grass stretched longingly towards the skies as they all gently swayed in a refreshing breeze, this trivial act sending massive ripples throughout the rolling grasslands and making it appear live and vibrant, the viridian waves playfully imitating the ocean of unending blue that was the heavens.

It was a sight that defied perfection.

For a moment Shirou was unable to so much as think as he was awestruck by the sheer beauty of the scenery that lazily stretched out before him, but it was ultimately the single utterance of a name that allowed him to recollect himself. Just before he could make out the two hazy figures existing beyond the horizon.

"…Avalon" a tearful voice whispered next to him, each and every syllable that had passed her lips dripping with warm nostalgia… and melancholy.

"So this is Avalon" Shirou affirmed in almost a whisper, afraid that talking too loudly might scare away the miracle before their eyes, "The place you will go to after your death…"

Merely voicing Saber's inevitable death caused his heart to cry out in sorrow.  
He was currently looking upon the final resting place of King Arthur, the very proof of her eventual and certain demise. It was heart-wrenchingly beautiful to behold, but this very beauty was built to conceal this world's yet unfulfilled purpose.  
It was unbearable to consider that Saber would one day end up here.

…or was it simply that Shirou couldn't bear not to go with her when the time came?

"Shirou?"

Before he knew it his cheek was enveloped by the gentle warmth of Saber's palm, her unexpectedly soft fingers wiping away the tears that had formed in his eyes.

"Ah, I'm sorry Saber, I don't know what came over me", Shirou hurriedly rubbed the blurriness from his other eye, his flustered behavior rewarded with a sweet giggle.

His cheek now felt dreadfully cold.

Ironically this was what finally made Shirou remember.

"Oh…" Shirou briefly looked between himself and Saber, "…we must have both used Avalon to escape then."

Saber nodded in agreement, "So it would seem, yet I do not know why we were made to travel to Avalon like this."

"Hmmm…"

Usually Avalon merely enveloped its user in an impenetrable Bounded Field that was unfazed by neither the Winds of Creation nor the Influences of the True Magics, yet this would be the first for Shirou and even Saber to see it manifest so completely. While the conceptual effect inlaid in its protection was one that 'shielded its user in the domain of the fairies', such effect had never been taken as literally as it had been now.

"I'm not too sure myself but maybe…" Shirou mused so that he might provide an answer that would ease the King's wrinkled brow, "…we invoked Avalon at the exact same moment, did we not? This isn't a Noble Phantasm for which there should ever exist two of to begin with, so the simultaneous activation of both Avalons may have caused them resonate with each other… in some way. Perhaps? Then there is our spiritual bond to consider that ties our souls together by magical contract, and the fact that Unlimited Blade Works broke down right before Caliburn and Excalibur met, so this pocket dimension could have formed as a waiting room of sorts before we are discarded back into the real world."

Rather than having answered her inquiry, it would seem that his unsubstantial theories only served to deepen the crease between her eyebrows. He would never dare mention it in her presence, but the confused look Saber gave him right then was unbearably cute of her.

"Either way, I don't doubt that this is only a temporary affair. Look, the world is already starting to disappear."

Just as Shirou had said, golden flakes delicately peeled off from the surrounding clouds. Even the sky itself gradually dissolved into a shower of gold, and so did the far-away stretches of grasslands. Unlike a torrenting shower drowning their sight however, the dissolution was more of a gentle drizzle that awarded its two occupants with more than enough time to enjoy the sight.

"So I lost, huh?" Shirou was the one to finally break the comfortable silence, "I couldn't stay and watch for long, but Caliburn was overwhelmed at the very last moment. It would seem even with its assistance I could not stand up to you."

Saber shot him a playful frown and crossed her arms, "What are you talking about Shirou? Did we not escape to Avalon together, seeing no other option for our survival? Though Excalibur overpowered Caliburn, the resulting explosion would have incinerated me regardless had I remained, so just this once…" Saber captivated Shirou with a delighted expression, "…let us consider our match a tie."

 _"_ _A tie, huh?"_ Shirou didn't know quite what to think. It was obvious that nobody else would ever judge the outcome of the battle in such a positive light, the sacrifices he had made simply to remain on equal footing with Saber too severe, but when faced with her upfront cheery attitude like this there was little he could do to deny her.

Either way, they would soon return to the real world. The scenery before them faded away like a leaf whisked away by a gentle breeze.

Both occupants were naturally inclined to witness the vanishing miracle.

Everything else seemed so insignificant now.

"Umm…" Shirou awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck as he stammered, "…would you like to enjoy the sight with me just a little bit longer?"

For a full second he forgot about the glimmering scenery he had previously been so captivated by as Saber's smile eclipsed it all.

"Yes… I would like that."

Her fingers interlocked with his.

And together they awaited the end of their dream.

* * *

 **Author's Note**

Before you grill me, I'm well aware of the liberties I've taken to have the both of them transported to Avalon, even if only momentarily, but I could think of no other location more fitting to serve as the conclusion of this battle.

This has actually been a story I've been meaning to write for a while, simple and straight-forward as it is, so I'm glad I finally managed to get it out there even if it didn't end up as great as I wished it would be. As you have no doubt guessed by now, I am a shameless fan of the Shirou-Saber pairing and this preference has no doubt affected my narrative, but I think no less of the other heroines and would have ideally liked to include them more in this short-story had I taken a more /Hollow Ataraxia-esque approach. Neither Sakura nor Rin are mages that should be underestimated, and to involve them in this battle would have certainly made for a bombastic change, but alas I elected to keep things simple. This story was written with the intention of being a simple battle scenario not too dissimilar to junk food, something that is quick and easy to enjoy but probably shouldn't have too much of xP

Hopefully you've managed to find yourself entertained by it as I had plenty of fun writing it.  
And with that I'll take my leave.


	5. -Info Page-

**List of original Noble Phantasms that have been revealed thus far:**

* * *

 **Name:** Carnwennan: Ivory Dagger of the Fallen King

 **Type:** Anti-Unit

 **Rank:** A

 **Range:** 1

 **Maximum Number of Targets:** 1

 **Description:** Carnwennan was Arturia's dagger which she carried alongside her lance and swords, though owing to her other weapons being more suited for the battlefield it lacks its share of legends and historic feats. While Arturia once used it to slice the witch Orddu clean in half and even defeated a giant with it, its main appeal is the ability it holds within. Though forged out of pure-white steel and inlaid with a golden inscription of faery letters, Carnwennan's most significant ability is its magical power to enshroud its user in shadow and completely obscure them to an onlooker's gaze. In practice, Arturia is capable of activating this Noble Phantasm whenever stepping into a shadow, the act of which will faultlessly conceal both her physical features and magical presence, keeping her hidden until either the shadow disappears or she steps out of it willingly. Arturia seemingly becomes one with whatever shadow she merges with, allowing her to escape the gazes of pursuers even if they are observing her with optical aids and buy herself a window of opportunity. Unless the battlefield is lit or other means are taken to strip Arturia of her cloak of shadows, her opponents will be unable to make out her exact location during combat. That being said, Servants with high ranks of Clairvoyance, Instinct, or the like will be able to guess the direction of her attack and keep up with her, albeit with a certain disadvantage.

* * *

 **Name:** Wynebgwrthucher: Face of the Evening

 **Type:** Anti-Army

 **Rank:** B

 **Range:** 100

 **Maximum Number of Targets:** EX

 **Description:** Wynebgwrthucher (Face of the Evening) is King Arthur's shield that holds the ability to lessen the strain of pain on her troops and increase morale, sapping the strength of the opposing army in the process and adding it to her own when invoked in battle. It is a derivative of the shield carried by Ulster King Conchobar, on whose shield was painted the face of a mermaid that granted him that very ability, though in Arturia's case her religious parallels also gave her shield the passive ability to inspire and encourage her troops. In essence, it possesses a vampiric effect of massive scale, gradually draining their Od and acting as a conduit to spread it across its allies, yet as befitting of the Martyr King, Arturia only holds the ability to distribute this vast amount of magical energy, and is incapable of harnessing it herself with no exceptions. The name "Face of the Evening" is both a reference to the beautiful face painted on the shield's surface, as well as an allusion to its ability. The longer Arturia carries the shield, and the longer her opponents struggle against her and her allies, the closer they are to approaching the eve of their lives as their lives' energy is gradually drained from then, until finally, they are overcome by eternal night. It is a shied she only carried out of necessity during her campaigns to keep her countrymen safe, but it goes without saying that she detests its abilities.

* * *

 **Name:** Sayoarashi: Evening Storm of the Silent Blade

 **Type:** Anti-Unit

 **Rank:** D

 **Range:** 50

 **Maximum Number of Targets:** 10

 **Description:** A special weapon with a sharp curved blade adorning one end of the shaft, and a chain the other, at the end of which is a metal weight. In addition to the large main sickle, a secondary sickle blade is fixed to the opposite end of the shaft. This simple attachment expands the attacking repertoire without forcing extraneous movement. Invented by an unnamed but talented ninja, it was a common weapon amongst the Iga. In the hands of an expert, Sayoarashi is said to tear through the darkness like a tempest in the night, an ability which manifest only after the sun has set, at which point each of its swing will cease to produce sound. Even the rattling of chains is perfectly erased, making this weapons flawlessly soundless and ideal for assassinations and sneak attacks. That being said, other than that, it possesses no other abilities.

* * *

 **Name:** Hige-kiri: Unerring Squall of Decapitation, Hiza-maru: Thou Shalt Not Walk Again

 **Type:** Anti-Unit

 **Rank:** C

 **Range:** 50

 **Maximum Number of Targets:** 1

 **Description:** Hige-kiri (Beard Cutter) is usually paired with Hiza-maru (Hobbler), and together they are a legendary pair of long and short blades said to have been owned by the Genji clan. The smith is unknown, but they are believed to have been forged at Minamoto-no-Mitsunaka's order in the Heian Era. The larger blade got its name for being so exquisitely honed it can separate an enemy from his beard before taking off his head; the smaller, for its ability to sever legs with a single well-placed strike. Hiza-maru is said to have been used by Minamoto-no-Yorimitsu on his mission to slay Shuten Doji in the hills outside of Kyoto, where he used it against a giant spider called the Tsuchi-gumo. In later centuries these swords were kept as family treasures by powerful warlords such as the Kai-Takeda clan, but their true provenance is difficult to ascertain. Hige-Kiri retains its ability to decapitate or separate any defined target with a slash as sharp as wind, which it accomplished by gathering pressurized air along the very edge of its blade and shooting it out as a single line which follows the path of the sword's trajectory. That being said, considering it is merely "air" which inflict the damage, it can be blocked by Noble Phantasms of equal and higher rank, and even lower ranked Noble Phantasms can resists the attack under duress. That being said, this sword makes up for it's relatively weak power output with its quick and cheap activation cost, allowing the user to invoke it multiple times in a row. Hiza-maru functions similarly, but as opposed to creating a single arc of pressurized air, it gathers sharp gusts of wind in a 10cm radius around its blade which extend its cutting range, the Bounded Field acting as a sort of elemental-attributed blender. While this Bounded Field can be discharged and shot out like Hige-Kiri, unlike its sister sword Hiza-maru's wind blast is unable to maintain its form and will quickly scatter, restricting it solely to the use of a short-ranged weapon. That being said, pairing Hige-Kiri's long-ranged capabilities with Hiza-Maru's short-ranged abilities, the two form a quite formidable combination.


End file.
